As a Nigerian procurement monitor, I have found ProAct extremely useful as a sharing and learning platform.  I have found that the legal framework for public procurement processes for many countries is similar; therefore, we can learn from the implementation of procurement practices all around the globe.

Everyday, I realize some more that development challenges as a result of poor, opaque procurement practises across Africa is very similar. Delivery of goods, works and services is extremely poor across the continent and the quality of individual lives is grossly affected.

So I am encouraged to see people willing to make the procurement process much more efficient and thankfully, ProAct has provided that space for learning and sharing.

For example, the pharmaceutical coalition from Uganda points to the need for strong, effective procurement; truth is that effective procurement monitoring that leads to significant positive results cannot be achieved by one, two or three people/organizations so the more the merrier; but not without capacity building and education and proAct keeps us informed on ways to build capacity.

From ProAct, we are kept up to date with procurement events in other parts of the world. From webinars to seminars, a lot of learning opportunities exist and organizations; be they civil society or government, can key into these events to build strong effective procurement coalitions.

Proact does not stop there. On this platform, I have found opportunities to share the work being done in Nigeria at international conferences and competitions. These opportunities open up the space for discourse and by sharing, we can work collectively to ensure that procurement processes significantly increase the prospects of development.

In Nigeria, there is an online procurement portal observatory that aids procurement monitors to report on procurement processes from wherever they are. The results fed into the portal observatory are automatically collated, analysed and used to generate early warning signals that will stop procurement processes from failing. ProAct has provided a platform for us to share our developed tools and experiences with our colleagues around the world. We also learn from what other procurement monitors worldwide are doing and adapt their methodologies where applicable to suit procurement monitoring in Nigeria.

And you may ask what results we have come up with in Nigeria; be sure that we will be sharing our reports and experiences through a link on ProAct.

So guys, let us not relent in our efforts to ensure that the there is accountability, transparency and effectiveness in our public procurement process. One thing ProAct has offered us all is a space where there are no boundaries.